Tuesday, September 17, 2013

December 2013 Solicits

December's DC solicits came out last week and there are some interesting things happening in the super-titles. The entire DC solicits are available at Comic Book Resources here:CBR

I shouldn't be surprised to see creative team mix-ups at DC Comics anymore. But when I approve of them, I won't complain.


SUPERGIRL #26
Written by TONY BEDARD
Art by YILDIRAY CINAR and RAY McCARTHY
Cover by GIUSEPPE CAMUNCOLI and CAM SMITH

Following the stunning conclusion of “Krypton Returns,” Supergirl arrives back on Earth with a new mission and a clearer understanding of her place in the universe. But a striking new foe prepares to welcome Supergirl home: LOBO! What could the mysterious new character want from Supergirl? Find out as the hot new creative team of writer Tony Bedard (GREEN LANTERN: NEW GUARDIANS) and artist Yildiray Cinar (EARTH 2) launch Supergirl into the next stage of her life in the DC Universe!

Perhaps the biggest news is that there will be a change in the creative direction of the Supergirl book with Tony Bedard taking over writing and Yildiray Cinar coming on board as artist. While there hasn't been a promotional interview about his run, Bedard has written a likable Supergirl in the past. And having a 'new mission' and being back on Earth makes me feel optimistic.

I have never really been a Lobo fan so I don't have any major opinion of his new look.

ACTION COMICS #26
Written by GREG PAK
Art and cover by AARON KUDER

All hell breaks loose as Superman is caught between an alien menace and the super-powered soldier the U.S. Army has sent to kill it!

As with Supergirl, we are just meeting the creative team on Action Comics. I am looking forward to the Pak/Kuder time on the book. That cover is great, reminding me of some of the giant monster early Marvel comics.

I will say that the Army Super-soldier theme here might be a little too close to the Superman Unchained current plot.


SUPERMAN #26
Written by SCOTT LOBDELL
Art by KENNETH ROCAFORT
Cover by KEN LASHLEY

In the aftermath of “Krypton Returns,” a distraught Man of Steel returns to find that the Parasite is back—and he is very hungry. First on the menu: Lois Lane!

We'll first meet the Parasite in this month's Villains Month issue. I suppose this means that the Psi-War is over. I do wonder if the Parasite will somehow drain the Twenty Psi-virus from Lois to save her.


SUPERMAN UNCHAINED #6
Written by SCOTT SNYDER
Art and cover by JIM LEE and SCOTT WILLIAMS
Backup story art by DUSTIN NGUYEN

The Man of Tomorrow and the Superman of yesterday go at it—no holds barred! Supes goes full throttle after his would-be ally, Wraith, in a seismic battle ranging from deep space to the ocean’s floor and ultimately the core of the earth! Meanwhile, Lois Lane holds the key to defeating Ascension, but she needs to reach the Fortress of Solitude to ensure its safekeeping—not to mention hers! And she’s being pursued by a heavily armed force, and it isn’t Ascension!

As this is issue #6, I have to figure that this is the end of this opening arc. I thought that the Ascension and Wraith plots would eventually merge into one. But this seems to feel like they are running parallel.

Sure the battle between Superman and Wraith sounds like it will be epic. But the Lois plot sounds more interesting than a simple slugfest. Is it her own father chasing after her? And how does she know about the Fortress anyways?



SUPERBOY #26
Written by FRANK HANNAH and MARV WOLFMAN
Art by ANDRES GUINALDO
Cover by RAFA SANDOVAL

Lost in time with the Teen Titans, Superboy comes to some startling revelations about his origins and future! Can he and the team rescue Kid Flash and find the way back to their own era?

And so we have another creative team turnover, this time on Superboy. I don't know if Marv Wolfman is going to be the best choice for this book ... but we'll see.

But now we have even more revelations about his origins. If any character has suffered in the new 52 it is Conner. He has had his origin written, re-written, and tweaked. He has had the tone of the book change dramatically. There has been no consistency in this book.


BATMAN/SUPERMAN #6
Written by GREG PAK
Art and cover by BRETT BOOTH and NORM RAPMUND

Retailers: This issue will ship with four covers. Please see the order form for more information.
Throughout the cosmos, one name commands respect and fear above all others. That name is MONGUL, and the world-conquering despot has his eyes set on Earth! And unless Batman and Superman can take down the mad, monstrous might of Mongul, the whole world will suffer!

On a whim, I bought the Mongul issue of Villains Month and was pleasantly surprised. So I can't wait to see him in action against the world's finest. As huge a fan I have been for Jae Lee's art on the first arc, I think Brett Booth is going to shine here. A Mongul story better fits his style.


ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #8
Written by MARC GUGGENHEIM
Art and cover by JOE BENNETT and BELARDINO BRABO

Dr. Emil Hamilton seeks out Superman with some shocking news—not only has S.T.A.R. Labs discovered the location of Krypton, but as far as they can tell, the planet remains intact! Join ARROW showrunner Marc Guggenheim and superstar artist Joe Bennett as they take Superman on a journey that challenges everything he thought he knew about Krypton!

It will be interesting to see Guggenheim's take on the Man of Steel. But I will say I am a bit weary of all the 'Krypton is back' stories that have happened over the last 5 years. I liked Bennett's art on Birds of Prey years ago.



SMALLVILLE: ALIEN #1
Written by BRYAN Q. MILLER
Art by EDGAR SALAZAR and DYM
Cover by CAT STAGGS

A new SMALLVILLE miniseries begins! Superman has barely adjusted to his new status quo when he finds himself racing against time (and Lex Luthor!) to uncover the secret behind a Russian meteor strike. Something has fallen from space—and it looks an awful lot like a Monitor! Don’t miss “Alien” part 1 of 4!

I don't quite understand the sales theory behind changing Smallville from an ongoing title to a series of mini-series unless it puts more first issues on the racks. Hopefully there will be a linear timeline to follow from one mini to the next.

But a Monitor falling from space? We have been waiting for the Crisis to come to this book. Hopefully Supergirl survives.


Anyways, looks like a great month! Just in time for the holidays.

4 comments:

  1. So now we play the waiting game...

    As for those solicits, I noticed two things.
    One, that's a lot of Forever Evil - the main book, three side books and tie-ins all over the place! What a mess, it's just as bad as what Marvel's doing right now with Infinity. I'm not even remotely tempted to read it.

    Two, what is the point of that Superboy Trade? Most of that is H'el on Earth, but of course, only one third of the events of the crossover! They're doing the same with the third Supergirl and Superman trades too, all of which will have four issues in that make absolutely no sense without the other two books as well. I don't know why they need to do this when H'el on Earth is getting its own hardcover trade anyway (I'm still considering whether or not I want that or if I should just keep on pretending it didn't happen, as it's going to be a fairly expensive book.)

    ReplyDelete
  2. About the revelations in the "Superboy" book, the solicits say that Superboy himself will be having those revelations, not us. They'll probably be the same origins that we saw in issue 19. So I wouldn't worry about consistency.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I still don't get the Smallville thing myself Anj, I'm just happy is not cancelled, I would hate that.

    Will you be reviewing the Tess special? I noticed you never got to review the Lois Lane annd Lana one so I was just wondering.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks for the comments.

    Thomas - I didn't even notice the Superboy trade solicit. There is no way I would buy a trade of that book in its current state.

    PRGirl - as much as I disliked the 'revelations' from before I would rather DC picks an origin and runs with it rather than changing things up again. So I hope you are right.

    LJ - you are right that I never quite got to the Lana/Lois special. I have more affinity for Tess than Lana so I will probably find the time for that special. When is that one coming out again?

    ReplyDelete